Protective garment having improved accessibility

ABSTRACT

Provided in embodiments of the present invention is a water sport garment providing protection from cold water and having an improved access system for entry into or exit from the garment. In one embodiment, the water sport protective garment includes a torso portion, pant-leg portions extending from the torso portion, non-openable sleeve portions extending from the torso portion, and at least one openable seam extending from the torso portion down each of the pant-leg portions such that when the openable seam is opened a section of the torso portion and sections of the leg portions can be displaced to improve access into and egress from the protective garment.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority from provisional application No.60/803,976, filed on Jun. 5, 2006, the contents of which areincorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to a protective garment havingimproved access, and more particularly to a water sport garmentproviding protection from cold water and having an improved accesssystem for entry into or exit from the garment.

BACKGROUND

Garments that provide protection for an individual's body have existedin some form for many years as cold environmental conditions can quicklydrain a body of heat. These protective garments generally provideprotection in two ways: shielding the body from elements of the coldconditions, such as a shell limiting the ability of a cold breeze toreach a person, and insulating a body from cold temperatures. Becausewater has a very high thermal conductivity, cold water can be especiallydangerous since it can quickly chill a person by stripping away bodyheat. This is particularly of concern when the exposure to waterincludes partial or total submersion in the water. In thesecircumstances, traditional cold weather protective garments aregenerally ineffective in protecting the person because the watersaturates them, which compromises their insulative properties. However,two types of garments have been developed that provide significantlybetter protection against cold water. The first type of garment acts toseal the water away from the body so that other warm clothing canprovide insulation without becoming wet. An example of this type ofgarment is a dry suit. The second type of garment works by allowing asmall layer of water to enter between the garment and the person's bodyand then trapping the small layer of water so that it can be heated andprovide a warm layer next to the person's body. An example of this typeof garment is a wetsuit.

Dry suits typically use tight seals on the wrists and neck of the suitto prevent water from entering the space between the suit and the bodyof the person. These suits can further use incorporated foot booties orhave additional tight seals around the ankles to prevent water fromentering the space between the suit and the body of the person. The drysuit itself generally includes water impermeable material such as asynthetic rubber and sealed access zippers. However, because zippers donot provide as effective a seal as the water impermeable material, theuse of zippers is generally minimized as much as possible (such as asingle zipper going across the upper torso from shoulder area toshoulder area), which can make donning a dry suit a difficult chore.Additionally, because the seals around the open parts of the suit mustrestrict the access of water, they are generally difficult to fitthrough.

Wetsuits, on the other hand, typically allow some water to enter thespace between the suit and the body of the person wearing the suit andthen trap that water in the space between the wetsuit and the person'sbody. To help accomplish this basic goal, most wetsuits include asynthetic rubber material such as neoprene. This synthetic rubberprovides some repellency protection from the environmental conditions,but also helps insulate an individual from the cold water by trapping athin layer of water next to an individual's body. The thin layer ofwater can be heated by the body and provide a warm layer next to theindividual's body. To ensure this insulative feature is effective,wetsuits are typically tight fitting so that there is only a small layerof water next to the body to heat, and have constrictive areas ofmaterial around the arm and leg cuffs to help trap this thin layer ofwater next to the body. However, because the effectiveness of wetsuitsdepends on this tight fit and constrictive cuffs, they can be verydifficult to enter into or exit from, especially because most wetsuitsonly have a single zipper running from the neck opening of the suit tothe mid section area on the front or back of the suit.

As discussed above, both of these types of protective garments, andindeed substantially all water sport protective garments, require acertain amount of mobility and dexterity to enter into or exit from thegarments. Access openings are also traditionally kept to a minimum, asthey are more susceptible than the garment material for allowing waterin. Although the access difficulties of these types of suits do notsubstantially hinder most adults, they can prevent a child or personwith limited mobility from being able to use the protective suit. Thisin turn may prevent these people from being able to safely participatein many activities in and around water. Thus, a water sport protectivegarment is desirable where the protective garment provides an improvedaccess system while still maintaining its effectiveness in providingprotection from cold water. These and other problems in conventionalprotective garments are addressed by embodiments of the presentinvention.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of the present invention provide a water sport protectivegarment having improved access and being structured to effectivelyprotect a person wearing the garment from cold water when the person isat least partially submerged in the cold water. In one embodiment, thewater sport protective garment includes a torso portion, pant-legportions extending from the torso portion, and non-openable sleeveportions extending from the torso portion. To help facilitate access tothe garment, the garment further includes at least one openable seamextending from the torso portion down each of the pant-leg portions suchthat when the openable seam is opened a section of the torso portion andsections of the leg portions can be displaced.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a front view of a protective garment according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates another front view of the protective garment shown inFIG. 1.

FIG. 3 a illustrates a detail view of a pant-end according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 b illustrates a detail view of a pant-end according to anotherembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 c illustrates a detail view of a sleeve-end and sleeve sealaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates a front view of a protective garment according toanother embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 5 a-5 d illustrate side views of a protective garment showingdifferent configurations of the openable seam according to embodimentsof the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates a front view of a protective garment according to yetanother embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

To address the problems discussed above and other problems, embodimentsof the present invention are directed to a water sport garment providingprotection from cold water and having an improved access system forentry into or exit from the garment. Some of these embodiments aredescribed below in detail, and in addition, some specific details areshown for purposes of illustrating the inventive principles. However,numerous other arrangements may be devised in accordance with theinventive principles of this patent disclosure. Thus, while the presentinvention is described in conjunction with the specific embodimentsillustrated in the drawings, it is not limited to these embodiments ordrawings. Rather, it is intended to cover alternatives, modifications,and equivalents that come within the scope and spirit of the inventiveprinciples set out in the appended claims. Further, well known processeshave not been described in detail in order not to obscure the presentinvention. Thus, the inventive principles are not limited to thespecific details disclosed herein.

Throughout this disclosure, the term water sport protective garment isused to describe the garment that is the subject of the presentinvention. Although this garment may be embodied in many differentforms, two of the most common methods of structuring water sportprotective garments are as wetsuits and dry suits. It will be notedbelow in the discussion of the exemplary embodiments of the presentinvention if a certain embodiment is particularly well suited for eitherof these types of protective garments.

FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate front views of a water sport protective garmentaccording to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 illustratesa first front view of the protective garment 100 in a closed state andFIG. 2 illustrates a second front view of the protective garment 100 inan open state. Although, this exemplary embodiment may be implemented inseveral types of garments, it may be particularly well suited as awetsuit because of the lack of sealing around the neck area.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a protective garment 100 includes a torsoportion 110, sleeve portions 120, and pant-leg portions 130. The sleeveportions 110 are integrated with the torso portion 110 and extend fromthe torso portion 110 to sleeve-ends 125. The sleeve-ends 125 may justbe the end of the sleeve material and simply hemmed. However, thesleeve-ends 125 may also include separate material attached to thesleeve material. The sleeve-ends 125 may also be formed to have a cuffof thicker material. Although FIGS. 1 and 2 show the sleeve portions 110as relatively long sleeves, the sleeve portions 110 may extend only ashort distance from the torso portion 110, such as only extending asmall distance down the upper arm of a person wearing the protectivegarment 100, or they may extend for a relatively long distance, such asdown to the wrist of a person wearing the protective garment 100. Sleeveseals 128 may be arranged at the sleeve-ends 125 so as to be integratedwith the sleeve-ends 125. Additional details about the sleeve seals 128are discussed below with respect to FIG. 3 c.

The pant-leg portions 130 are also integrated with the torso portion 110and extend from the torso portion 110 to pant-ends 135. Similar to thesleeve-ends 125, the pant-ends 135 may just be the end of the pant-legmaterial or include separate material attached to and integrated withthe pant-leg material. Further, the pant-end 135 may have a hemmedfinish or be formed in a cuff arrangement. Additionally, the pant-legportions 130 may extend only a short distance from the torso portion,such as extending a small distance down the upper leg of a personwearing the protective garment 100, or they may extend for a relativelylong distance, such as down to the ankle of a person wearing theprotective garment 100.

The torso portion 110 has a front section, a back section, and sidesections. Additionally, the torso portion 110 has an upper section thatincludes a neck opening 115 and a lower section. The sleeve portions 120extend from the upper section of the torso portion 110 and the pant-legportions 130 extend from the lower section of the torso portion 110. Thetorso portion 110, the sleeve portions 120, and the pant-leg portions130 may include a material that is water impermeable. This material maybe a synthetic rubber, such as neoprene.

The system by which the protective garment 100 illustrated in FIGS. 1and 2 may be accessed includes a plurality of openable seams that extendfrom the neck opening 115 of the torso portion 110 to the pant-ends 135of the pant-leg portions 130. In this embodiment, the openable seams mayinclude a first zipper track 150 operable with a first zipper 155 and asecond zipper track 151 operable with a second zipper 156. The use ofthe term “zipper” may refer to a zipper track, a zipper slider, or bothmechanisms. Although the openable seam is embodied as a zipper in theseembodiments, any type of resealable continuous closure mechanism may beused. In the present embodiment, the first zipper track 150 extends fromthe neck opening 115 down a first one of the pant-leg portions 130 to afirst one of the pant-ends 135 and the second zipper track 151 extendsfrom the neck opening 115 down a second one of the pant-leg portions 130to a second one of the pant-ends 135. The zippers 155 and 156 arerespectively operable along the first and second zipper tracks 150 and151 to provide access to the protective garment 100.

FIG. 1 illustrates the protective garment 100 in a closed state. Thatis, the zippers 155 and 156 are operated to fully engage the zippertracks 150 and 151. The zippers 155 and 156 may be configured to befully engaged when they are near the neck opening 115 as illustrated inFIG. 1 or they may be configured to be fully engaged near the pant-ends135 as illustrated by the phantom lines in FIG. 1. Further, zippers 155and 156 may comprise a dual zipper configuration where each zipper track150 and 151 has two sliders operating on it. This dual zipperconfiguration may allow for additional flexibility in providing accessto the protective garment 100.

FIG. 2 illustrates the protective garment 100 in an open state. That is,the zippers 155 and 156 are operated to fully disengage the zippertracks 150 and 151. As shown in FIG. 2, when the protective garment 100is in an open state, a section of the torso portion 110 and sections ofthe pant-leg portions 130 may be displaced to ease entry into and exitfrom the protective garment 100. In particular, because sections of thetorso and pant-leg portions 110, 130 can be displaced, a child or personwith limited mobility may easily step into the protective garment, puttheir arms through the sleeve portions 120, and zip up the zippers 155and 156.

These steps may also be carried out with the help of an assistant suchas a parent or friend. If the zippers 155 and 156 fully disengage thepant-leg portions 130 such that the pant-ends 135 open, a child orperson with limited mobility may be laid in the protective garment 100,insert their arms in the sleeve portions 120, and have an assistantengage the zippers 155 and 156 to zip up the protective garment 100.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the sleeve portions 120 of the protectivegarment 110 do not open. That is, the sleeve portions 120 do not have aseparate zipper access system. This is in part because as mentionedabove, zippers or other openable seams tend to let in more water thanthe insulative material itself. Second, zippers can be more costly toimplement than just providing fully formed sleeves. Also, children andpeople with limited mobility generally have an easier time guiding theirarms and hands through sleeves than in donning a complete tight fittinggarment because they are generally used to inserting their arms throughsleeves. Additionally, the sleeves may be formed to fit more loosely onthe person and then have cinching mechanisms (discussed with respect toFIGS. 5 a-5 d) that can help tighten the fit after the person hasinserted their arms into the sleeve portions 120.

FIGS. 3 a-3 c illustrate detailed views of embodiments of the pant-endsand sleeve ends. FIG. 3 a illustrates a detail view of a pant-endaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3 a, each pant-end 235 may be structured so that thezipper track 250 extends to the end of the fabric. In thisconfiguration, the zipper 255 may fully disengage the zipper track 250such that the pant-end 235 completely opens up. The configuration ofthis embodiment may have the advantage of allowing access to personsthat may have difficulty guiding their legs through a tight cuff orseal, such as a young child or a person with limited mobility in theirlegs.

FIG. 3 b illustrates a detail view of a pant-end according to anotherembodiment of the present invention. Referring to the embodimentillustrated in FIG. 3 b, each pant-end 335 may be structured so that thezipper track 350 does not extend to the end of the fabric. Thus, in thisembodiment, the pant-end 335 remains partially closed even when thezipper track 350 is completely disengaged. Each pant-end 335 may alsohave a pant-leg seal 338 integrally formed with the pant-end 335. Thepant-leg seal 338 may include a rubber or synthetic rubber gasket thatlimits or completely prevents water from entering the protectivegarment. In a wetsuit configuration, this seal 338 may also help preventthe thin layer of warmed water from leaving or interchanging with newcold water. The configuration of this embodiment may have the advantageof providing improved sealing functionality and improved warmth. Also,this embodiment may be easier to operate with children that squirm ormove while the suit is being donned. That is, it can be very difficultto engage a zipper that is on two separate sections of material,especially when one or both of the sections of material is beingdisplaced by a moving body.

FIG. 3 c illustrates a detail view of a sleeve-end and sleeve sealaccording to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 3c, each sleeve portion 120 may have a sleeve seal 128 integrally formedwith the sleeve-end 125. Similar to the pant-leg seal 338 shown in FIG.3 b, the sleeve seal 128 may be formed of a separate piece of materialand attached to the sleeve-end 125. The sleeve seal 128 may include arubber or synthetic rubber gasket that limits water from entering theprotective garment. A sleeve-seal 128 that completely prevents waterfrom entering the protective garment is necessary for dry suits. On theother hand, in a wet suit configuration, the sleeve-seal 128 may helpprevent the thin layer of warmed water form leaving or interchangingwith new cold water. While this seal may make donning the sleeveportions 120 of the protective garment more difficult, it will also makethe garment more effective in providing insulating protection. Thus, theuse of seals in specific embodiments may be dependent on the physicalcapabilities of the person the garment is designed for.

FIG. 4 illustrates a front view of a protective garment according toanother embodiment of the present invention. The embodiment illustratedin FIG. 4 is similar in many ways to the embodiment illustrated inFIG. 1. Thus, elements that are similarly structured and/or have similarfunctionality will not be described again. This embodiment may again bebetter implemented as a wetsuit because of the lack of a seal in theneck and upper torso areas.

Referring to FIG. 4, protective garment 400 includes a torso portion410, sleeve portions 420 extending to sleeve ends 425, and pant-legportions 430 extending to pant-ends 435. The protective garment 400 alsoincludes an access system that features zipper tracks 450 and 451operable by zippers 455 and 456. The operation of this access system issimilar to the one discussed above with respect to the embodimentillustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2. In this embodiment, however, thesleeve-portions 420 include hand flap folds 480 formed adjacent to thesleeve-ends 425. The hand flap folds 480 may be structured to be able tofold over the corresponding sleeve-ends 425 and sleeve seals 428 ifpresent. The hand flap folds 480 may help improve the overall warmth ofthe protective garment 400 by protecting the hands of the person wearingthe protective garment 400 from direct contact with cold water. Eachhand flap fold may be formed by stitching along the sides and endadjacent to the sleeve-end 425 while leaving the end facing the torsoportion 410 loose. This arrangement allows the flap to be folded overthe sleeve-end 425 to cover the sleeve-end 425. The right sleeveillustrated in FIG. 4 shows the hand flap fold 480 in an unused state,while the left sleeve of the protective garment 400 shows the hand flapfold 480 folded over the sleeve-end 425.

The protective garment 400 may also include an integrated hood 470. Thehood 470 my be integrally formed with a least a section of the torsoportion 410 near the neck opening 415. As a substantial amount of bodyheat can be lost through the head, a hood 470 may be desirable insituations where the water temperature is especially cold, or there is alikelihood of prolonged exposure to the cold water. The hood 470 may bedonned after the person is in the protective garment 400 with thezippers 455 and 456 fully engaged in a closed state. Additionally, thehood 470 may be donned during entry into the protective garment 400.

The pant-leg portions 430 of the protective garment may also includebooties 490 integrally formed with the pant-ends 435. The booties 490can be made of a moderately flexible material to fit a variety of footsizes and may include traction patterns (not shown) on the bottom partsfor improved grip while standing or walking. In this embodiment, thezipper tracks 450 and 451 do not extend all the way to the integratedbooties. To don the protective garment 400 with booties 490, a personwould have to slip his or her feet into each of the booties, inserttheir arms into the sleeve portions, and use the zippers 455 and 456 tofully engage the respective zipper tracks 450 and 451. Having integratedbooties 490 may be advantageous in providing additional warmth, as apant-leg cuff or seal is not required, and may be helpful in providinggeneral foot protection without the need for separate footwear.

FIGS. 5 a-5 d illustrate side views of a protective garment showingdifferent configurations of the openable seam according to embodimentsof the present invention. Each of FIGS. 5 a-5 d illustrate an embodimentsimilar to the embodiment shown in FIG. 1. However, the embodimentsshown in FIGS. 5 a-5 d illustrate various openable seam or zipperconfigurations. In addition to illustrating various openable seam orzipper configurations, the embodiments shown in FIGS. 5 a-5 d include acinching mechanism 560. The cinching mechanism may allow for a tighterand more customized fit of the wet suit. Although only one cinchingmechanism 560 is shown in each of these embodiments, a plurality ofcinching mechanisms 560 may be present to further customize the fit ofeach protective garment 500. Cinching mechanisms 560 may be especiallyuseful where the protective garments are made for children becausechildren tend to quickly outgrow garments that have a set limited size.The cinching mechanisms 560 may include fasteners such as Velcro straps,string ties, buttons, loops, cinchable bungee cords, and the like.

Referring to FIG. 5 a, the openable seams or zippers 550 a are formed ona back section or back panel 512 of the torso portion 510 and backsections of the pant-legs 530. Here, it may be difficult for a singleperson with limited mobility to don the suit by himself or herself, butit may be easier if the person has an assistant and can lie face down inthe suit to don the protective garment 500 a.

Referring to FIG. 5 b, the openable seams or zippers 550 b are formed ona front section or front panel 511 of the torso portion 510 and a frontsection of the pant-legs 530. Here, it may be easier for a single personwith limited mobility to don the suit by himself or herself, but theopenable seams or zippers 550 b may interfere with a use of the suit,such as in surfing where a person typically paddles out to waves withthe front part of their torsos on their surfing boards.

Referring to FIG. 5 c, the openable seams or zippers 550 c are formedfrom the neck opening 515 partially down the back 512 of the torsoportion 510 and then continuing down the sides 513 of the torso portion510 and sides of the pant-leg portions 530. This configuration may allowfor even greater access as compared to the embodiments of FIGS. 5 a and5 b because a greater section of the torso and pant-leg portions will bedisplaced, which in turn may make it easier to don the protectivegarment 500 c.

Referring to FIG. 5 d, the openable seams or zippers 550 d are formedfrom the neck opening 515 partially down the front 511 of the torsoportion 510 and then continuing down the sides 513 of the torso portion510 and sides of the pant-leg portions 530. Again, this configurationmay allow for even greater access as compared to the embodiments ofFIGS. 5 a and 5 b because a greater section of the torso and pant-legportions will be displaced, which in turn may make it easier to don theprotective garment 500 d.

FIG. 6 illustrates a front view of a protective garment according to yetanother embodiment of the present invention. The embodiment shown inFIG. 6 is similar to the embodiment shown in FIG. 1. Thus, elements thatare similar in both embodiments will not be further described. Thisembodiment may be implemented as a wetsuit or a dry suit because theneck area could be sealed.

Referring to FIG. 6, the protective garment 600 includes a singleopenable seam 650 having zippers 655 and 656 that extend from the torsoportion 610 of the protective garment 600 down each of the pant-legportions 630 to pant-ends 635. Although this embodiment is shown havingtwo zipper sliders 655 and 656, a single zipper slider configuration isalso possible. The openable seam may additionally be a water tightsealed zipper, which is typically used with dry suits to prevent allwater from entering the space between the protective garment 600 and theperson wearing the protective garment 600. However, because thesezippers are often fairly delicate, wetsuits usually use a more robustbut less water-proof zipper as a little water entry into the spacebetween the person and the protective garment 600 is allowable.

In addition to having the simplicity of only a single openable seam 650,this embodiment is advantageous because a neck seal 617 may beintegrally formed with the neck opening 615 such that substantially nowater can enter the protective garment 600. This is especially necessarywhere the protective garment 600 is a dry suit, as all water should beprevented from entering the space between the protective garment 600 andthe person. Because of the need for dryness within a dry suit, thesetypes of protective garments 600 require strong gasket seals on allportions of the protective garment 600 that provide a barrier along theskin of the person wearing the protective garment 600. The protectivegarment 600 may also have integrated booties as shown in the embodimentof FIG. 4.

Having described and illustrated the principles of the invention inembodiments thereof, it should be apparent that the invention can bemodified in arrangement and detail without departing from suchprinciples. I claim all modifications and variations coming within thespirit and scope of the following claims.

1. A wetsuit having improved access for persons with limited mobility,the wetsuit comprising: a torso portion having a neck opening;un-openable sleeve portions extending from the torso portion tosleeve-ends; first and second pant-leg portions extending from the torsoportion respectively to first and second pant-ends; a first zipperextending from the neck opening of the torso portion to the firstpant-end of the first pant-leg portion; and a second zipper extendingfrom the neck opening of the torso portion to the second pant-end of thesecond pant-leg portion.
 2. The wetsuit of claim 1, where the first andsecond pant-ends respectively open by use of the first and secondzippers.
 3. The wetsuit of claim 1, further comprising first and secondpant-leg seals respectively integrated with the first and secondpant-ends, the first and second pant-leg seals being fixed andun-openable.
 4. The wetsuit of claim 1, further comprising first andsecond booties respectively integrated with the first and secondpant-ends.
 5. The wetsuit of claim 4, further comprising hand flap foldsattached to each of the sleeves adjacent to the sleeve-ends, each handflap fold arranged such that it can fold over the correspondingsleeve-end.
 6. The wetsuit of claim 5, further comprising a hoodintegrated with at least a portion of the neck opening of the torsoportion.
 7. The wetsuit of claim 6, further comprising at least onecinching mechanism.
 8. The wetsuit of claim 1, where the first andsecond zippers are arranged on front panels of the torso and pant-legportions.
 9. The wetsuit of claim 1, where the first and second zippersare arranged on back panels of the torso and pant-leg portions.
 10. Thewetsuit of claim 1, where the first and second zippers are arranged onside panels of the pant-leg portions, and side panels and a front panelof the torso portion.
 11. The wetsuit of claim 1, where the first andsecond zippers are arranged on side panels of the pant-leg portions, andside panels and a back panel of the torso portion.
 12. The wetsuit ofclaim 1, further comprising sleeve seals integrated with thesleeve-ends.
 13. A water sport protective garment structured to protecta person wearing the garment from cold water when the person is at leastpartially submerged in the cold water, the protective garmentcomprising: a torso portion; pant-leg portions extending from the torsoportion; at least one openable seam extending from the torso portiondown each of the pant-leg portions such that when the openable seam isopened a section of the torso portion and sections of the leg portionscan be displaced to ease access into and egress from the protectivegarment; and non-openable sleeve portions extending from the torsoportion.
 14. The protective garment of claim 13, where the openable seamextends partially down the pant-leg portions such that a section of thepant-leg portions remains unopened when the openable seam is opened. 15.A water sport protective garment comprising: a torso portion having anintegrated front section, an integrated back section, integrated sidesections, an upper section having a neck opening, and a lower section:first and second sleeve portions integrated with the upper section ofthe torso portion, each sleeve portion extending from the torso portionto sleeve-end sections; first and second pant-leg portions integratedwith the lower section of the torso portion, each pant-leg portionextending from the torso portion to pant-end sections; sleeve sealsformed at each sleeve-end section, each sleeve seal being fixed andun-openable; and at least one openable seam extending from the ends ofthe pant-end sections to the upper section of the torso portion suchthat at least a portion of the torso portion and portions of the firstand second pant-leg portions can be displaced to facilitate entry intoand exit from the protective garment.
 16. The protective garment ofclaim 15, where the openable seam includes a single zipper trackextending from the first pant-end section to the upper section of thetorso portion and continuing to extend from the upper section of thetorso portion to the second pant-end section.
 17. The protective garmentof claim 16, further comprising a neck seal formed at the neck openingof the upper section of the torso portion, the neck seal being fixed andun-openable.
 18. The protective garment of claim 17, where the sleeveseals and neck seal are structured so that a person wearing theprotective garment while at least partially submerged in water remainsdry under the protective garment.
 19. The protective garment of claim18, further comprising leg seals formed at each pant-end section, eachleg seal being un-openable and structured so that the person wearing theprotective garment while at least partially submerged in water remainsdry under the protective garment.
 20. The protective garment of claim18, further comprising booties integrally formed with each pant-endsection.